We all spend a lot of time texting on a device of some sort.
Why not try out a few texting games that are both fun and help develop team bonds?
Today’s list brings you 35 of the best texting-based games and activities. Let’s do this!
What exactly are texting games?
Texting games are activities that unfold entirely over a text-based system. They transform the simple textbox into an area of creativity and laughter. They’re perfect for both remote and hybrid work setups, creating a fun atmosphere that doesn’t necessarily need complete face-to-face interaction.
These word-based games can actually become a useful method for colleagues to build connections and better understand each other’s communication styles. When carried out well, they’re a low-cost activity for bringing every member closer together.
35 texting games to play with friends or colleagues
Here’s our list of 35 unforgettable texting games to strengthen team bonds. Whether they’re on-site or remote, these activities need practically no materials to set up:
1. 20 questions
Kickstarting our list is a game perfect for sparking conversations and testing creativity. The rules are super simple; one player thinks of an object, person, or place, and the others take turns asking yes-or-no questions to figure out what it is. Players only get 20 questions to guess. For example, if the answer is “Eiffel Tower,” questions might include, “Is it man-made?” or “Can you climb it?” This game works well in a group text, Slack thread, or Microsoft Teams chat, encouraging both critical thinking and team engagement. Who’s going to guess correctly first?
2. Word association
Here’s a quick-thinking game to keep everyone on their toes. One player starts by texting a word, and the next responds with the first related word that comes to mind. For example, Player 1 might say “butchers,” and Player 2 replies with “pork chops.” The chain continues until someone hesitates, repeats a word, or throws out something hilariously unrelated (like “lasagna” after “mountain”). This is a great team-building exercise that helps small groups break the ice. Bonus points if you manage to sneak in a clever twist that leaves everyone laughing!
3. Guess the location
Put your teammates’ travel knowledge to the test. This game works great with virtual players while screen sharing and can run even smoother with a website like Geoguessr. As host, share your picture of a random location, and let others guess where it is. For example, a photo of gondolas might lead to guesses like “Venice!” Players can request up to three additional hints if they’re stuck, letting them know the continent or an interesting fact about the place. Whether you’re exploring virtual cityscapes or countryside vistas, this game is perfect for those with an eye for detail!
4. Complete the proverb
Put your team members’ wits to the test with this clever word game. The starting player texts the beginning of a well-known proverb, and others race to finish it. Some of the best we could think of include:
- ____ wasn’t built in a day (Rome).
- Two _____ are better than one (heads).
- The early bird catches the ____ (worm).
- Good things come to those who ____ (wait)
This game can be especially fun for international and non-native teams as they can pick up useful phrases with interesting histories. Expect some hilarious results if you choose more difficult proverbs. Have fun!
5. Guess the era
Here’s a teambuilding game that lets teams step back in time with slang and expressions for yesteryear. One player texts a slang word, cultural trend, or famous event, and the rest guess the decade or era it’s from. It’s an interesting way to reflect on how language has evolved over time. For example, someone might know that the word “Groovy” was really popular in the 1960s, or how people left conversations with “I’m outtie” during the 1990s. For extra fun, throw in photos that work as clues to help people guess. This game is a hit for history buffs and wordsmiths alike.
6. Unscramble my word
Put your team’s brainpower to the test with a good old-fashioned word scramble. Just get one player to think of a long word, scramble it up, and see who can guess the unscrambled word first. Start simple and make the words more complex over time. “OCLHCATE” for “CHOCOLATE,” or “EMPEOTCLX” turns into “COMPLEXITY,” there’s no real limit to the difficulty of words, just make it as fun as possible.
7. Secret spy word
Channel your inner detective with a sneaky texting game. Each player is assigned a “secret word” they must discreetly slip into the conversation without others noticing. An example could be a person having the word “marshmallow,” and sneaking it into their sentence, like “This project’s going as smoothly as roasting marshmallows over a campfire!” Over your meeting, people text in their guesses as time goes by. It’s a playful way to keep the chat engaging, just don’t make it too easy or obvious!
8. Fake news
Get into the role of a tabloid writer with this quick team-building game. Each player invents an outlandish fake headline, and the group votes on whether it’s “Fake” or “Fact.” Here are a few fun examples we’ve seen recently to get you started:
- A married couple in California named their baby with emoji
- An eight-year-old girl pulled a medieval sword from a lake
- A university banned the use of capital letters to avoid scaring students
They all look rather outlandish, but the second one is actually true (it happened in Sweden, check for yourself!). This activity is a good way to let your teams loosen up and have a laugh.
9. Meme matching
Ever wondered who in your group has the best meme game? For this text game, just share a cue like “My Monday morning vibes” or “When your Wi-Fi crashes mid-meeting,” and see who can reply with their funniest memes. No words are needed for this one, players just use text to search through GIF responses and memes online. Whoever cracks the most people up wins the round. Bonus points for memes that are so relatable that they deserve to be printed and framed.
10. Just for fun puns
Who doesn’t love a good (or terrible) pun? Kickstart a text game with a theme, like animals or food, and let everyone share their best wordplay. A food-themed round might have people texting in gems like, “I’m egg-cited for lunch!” or “This meeting is really raising the steaks.” The more groans it gets, the better! Award points for originality or simply making everyone laugh—or cringe. This game is great for showcasing pun talents, just don’t let things get too cheesy.
11. Virtual mad libs
Turn your chat into a storytelling adventure with Virtual Mad Libs. An ad-lib is something improvised on the spot. Set up a short story template, leaving keywords blank, like “(Name) went to the (place) to find an (adjective) (object).” Have the rest of the group text in random words to fill in the blanks, with no context whatsoever. You might get some strange results back, such as “Gary went to the zoo to find a sparkly potato.” Yes, we’re sure he did, somewhere in the world…
12. Text chain poetry
I wondered lonely as a cloud…
This game might instigate a poetic masterpiece from your teams (or a chaotic mess). One person kicks things off with a poetic line like, “In the forest, whispers grew louder.” The next adds another line to continue the poem, and so on. There’s no right or wrong direction, just some sentences are easier to follow up than others. Whether your team leans toward deep or ridiculous, this game guarantees creativity and a few laughs. Save the final result. You might just make your office motivational poster that bit more poetic!
13. Synonym challenges
This team-building game demands you to think fast! One person sends a word, and the challenge is to reply with a synonym before the timer runs out. For example, “happy” might get replies like “joyful” or “elated.” But don’t get too comfortable. Rounds can easily be made more difficult with words like “effervescent” (that means bubbly, by the way). To up the stakes, ban repeats or set a rapid timer. This one is quick to play and perfect for anyone who secretly loves showing off their vocabulary. It’s like a mini workout for your brain!
14. Opposites attract
Flip the script with a rapid game of “opposites attract.” For this game, one player just needs to text a word, while everyone else scrambles to reply with the word’s opposite. Sounds easy enough, right? Well, not when someone throws in curveballs like “chaos” or “invisible.” Things can get hilariously out of hand as players stretch their creativity. Add a speed element or veto questionable answers for even more fun. This game is simple, quick, and endlessly entertaining.
15. First letter, last letter
Think fast and stay sharp, folks! The game starts with someone texting a word, and the next player must reply with a texted word that starts with the last letter of the previous one. An easy example might be “Orange” leading to “Elephant,” leading to “Tiger.” Sounds simple, but as the words pile up, so does the pressure! Add your own themes like animals, tourist spots, or famous people to make things harder too. Carry this one out in teams for a competitive laugh through texting.
16. Acronym inventor
This one can really challenge the wordsmiths in your teams. One person texts a random string of letters, like “B.O.S.S.” or “F.R.O.G.,” and the group has to come up with the funniest or most creative acronym it could stand for. An acronym for F.R.O.G might create “Fully Reliable Office Guru” or “Frequently Recreates Own-Goals.” The possibilities are endless, and the results are often hilariously absurd.
17. Emoji translator
Decode cryptic emoji sentences by texting your answers in the chatbox. One person texts a series of emojis representing a phrase, movie, or famous saying, and the others race to guess what it means. You might get a jogger emoji followed by a cheeseburger (for fast food) or Father Christmas next to a cityscape (for Santa Claus is coming to town!). For an added challenge, insert emojis that represent some of your work phrases. You’re sure to spark laughter as everyone scrambles to make sense of the clues. Find out who is the true emoji whisperer at work!
18. Story relay
This one is as fun as it is simple to set up. The first player texts a sentence to start the story, like, “It was a dark and stormy night when the Wi-Fi suddenly stopped working.” Each person adds the next line, building the tale as it twists and turns. Consider adding visual clues to the texted piece, like a dice, painting, or a scary mask. No limits, no rules, just pure imagination. Save the finished story for laughs later or as a potential script for the next office skit.
19. Don’t forget the lyrics
Time to put your musical memory to the test. One player texts the opening line of a popular song, and the rest must complete the next line. For instance, “Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy?” could spark a quick response: “Caught in a landslide, no escape from reality!” To make it trickier, limit responses to a timer or stick to a specific genre like ‘80s hits or movie soundtracks. This game is great for music lovers and is an all-round blast to play through text!
20. Reverse texting
Flip the script (literally) in a game where each sentence comes out completely backward. One person simply writes a full sentence in reverse, then lets every other person race to text what the reversed sentence is.
”?tuo ecnetnes siht krow uoy did ylkciuq woH” Well, how quickly did you work this sentence out? (It took our office colleagues quite a while). It’s a fun brain workout that’s bound to produce a few laugh-out-loud mistakes, especially when auto-correct gets involved. Try this text-based puzzler out in your next meeting.
21. Scattergories
Scattergories is a much-beloved game across the world. It works very well through just texting, too. It’s easy to load up an online Scattergories game and share your screen with your teams over your platform of choice.
You’ll get around 10 random categories, and one key-letter, which every answer must begin with. An example could be fruits with the letter B, so you’ll be getting answers like banana or blueberry. To really up the difficulty, only accept unique answers from teams as they text their answers in. This will force them to think of non-conventional answers, especially for simpler categories.
22. Typo challenge
Prepare for some hilariously garbled messages! In this game, players purposefully mistype a word or phrase, and the others must figure out what it’s supposed to say. One player crafts a text sentence for the group to read and deliberately adds a few typos for others to find. An example might be ““I can’t weight to meat you at the cafe!” Easy to spot both typos, right? See how crafty your teams can get with their own sentences, even adding some red herrings that look wrong, but are actually right! This is a fun text game to keep everyone sharp and is loved by those into grammar.
23. Guess the acronym
Unleash your team’s creativity with a game focused on texting acronyms. One player texts a random acronym, like “T.R.E.E.,” and the others guess what it could stand for. Encourage everyone to create whatever answer they wish. Randomness is celebrated. An answer might be “Totally Relaxing Evening Event” or “The Raccoons Enjoy Everything.” Whatever comes to mind is good! If you want to make it harder, choose a theme like movies or hobbies.
Enjoy the wordplay with your teams!
24. Memory test
Time to test everyone’s recall skills. One player texts a list of random items, like “apple, giraffe, stapler, moon, pizza,” and gives the group 10 seconds to memorize it. Then, the list disappears, and players must text back as many items as they can remember. For a twist, mix in unrelated categories or throw in a decoy item during the recall round. This game is equal parts challenge and fun, perfect for keeping brains sharp and sparking a few laughs.
25. Phrase mash-up
Get creative and a little bit silly with a game that mashes two phrases together. One player sends two unrelated phrases or idioms mashed together, and the group must guess the original phrases. Here’s a silly example:
“Don’t cry over spilled beans” This phrase mixes together “Don’t cry over spilled milk” and “Spill the beans” and sounds really silly. The trickier the mash-up, the funnier the guesses. Try adding themes like food, work, or pop culture for a fun way to flex wordplay skills and see who can untangle the most bizarre combinations.
26. Text Pictionary
Free your inner artist with the need for drawings. In Text Pictionary, players describe a picture using only emojis, and the rest of the group guesses what it represents. You might use an example like fish together with chips for Fish n’ Chips, or a beach umbrella with a cocktail for a “Tropical vacation.” Keep it light with simple concepts or get competitive with complex ones like movie titles or famous landmarks. This guarantees some hilarious interpretations along the way.
27. Would you rather?
A text game of “Would you rather?” is a surefire way to bring teams together. These work great as meeting icebreakers and are useful for really large groups. Answers are short and to the point, and the results can be hilarious. “Would you rather have to sing every time you speak or dance every time you walk?” Someone responds with their immediate answer and can explain if people want to know more. Just be ready for someone to throw in the curveball no one saw coming!
28. Rapid fire word chain link
Employ some quick thinking with a rapid-fire word chain link game. This game starts with one player texting a word, and the next must quickly respond with a related word. “Ocean” might lead to “Wave,” in turn leading to “Surfboard.” This is a really fun way to get your teams on the same page, with complete synergy. Each person only has a few seconds to respond, or they’re out! Put a ban on repeated words, and shorten the timer each round. Expect hilarious results and some awesome lateral thinking to chain words together.
29. This or that?
We love using “This or that?” questions for fun and to bring colleagues closer together. They’re super easy to set up and can create a barrel of laughs. One player texts a pair of choices, starting simple. “Coffee or tea?” “Cats or dogs?”, you know, the usual icebreakers. Over time, allow for much sillier and more random questions “Fight one horse-sized duck or 100 duck-sized horses?”. Questions can become pathways for getting to know each other better, revealing each person’s preferences in this fun and quick icebreaker.
30. Song emoji quiz
Combine the office’s love of music with emoji decoding skills. If you’ve got a group playlist sorted with your teams already, even better! One player texts a string of emojis that represent a song title, and others race to guess it. You might get some great examples, like a raincloud and musical note to represent the Gene Kelly song “I’m Singing In The Rain.” This one is perfect for music lovers and guarantees some creative interpretations of your favorite tracks!
31. Time Traveler’s quiz
Ever wondered what it’s like to explain modern life to someone from another era? For this game, have a person role-play and pretend to be from the past or future. They text questions or comments about “strange” modern things they face. They might raise some questions about “A magical box that hums and makes food hot…” That’s one way to contextualize a microwave indeed. “Explain TikTok like I’m from 1920.” The rest of the group responds, trying to be as informative (or as hilariously unhelpful) as possible. A guaranteed future winner!
32. What’s missing?
Test your team’s attention to detail with this fun challenge that’s perfect for remote teams. While on a video call, one person switches off their camera for a moment. At that moment, they remove an item from their background and turn the camera back on. Everyone else needs to figure out what went missing and write it in the chatbox. It’s a simple little game that tests everyone’s observation skills. Make it even harder by setting the contestants a timer and creating teams.
“Hey boss, wasn’t there a bowl of pasta behind you just a minute ago?..”
33. Rhyme time
Sharpen your rhyming skills with this quick and creative text game. One person texts a word, such as “Beach,” and then everyone else needs to respond as quickly as they can with a word that rhymes. “Peach,” “Leech” and “Speech” can all be accepted, until someone does the inevitable and replicates an answer. Deny this answer, and wait until you only have one person left. They’re eliminated, and you move on to the next person, whittling it down until you find a champion. Feel free to dish out bonus points for unexpected or funny rhymes. Don’t ever start with the word “Orange” though, that’s a toughie.
34. Guess a movie scene (emojis only!)
Create a mini scene or story using only emojis, and challenge your group to text their guesses of what it represents. Think of some famous movie scenes that have stood out over the years. One example could be a running emoji, with a long road and then a big beard emoji (to represent the classic Forrest Gump scene). The simpler the clue, the easier it is, but the more cryptic, the stranger the guesses become! It’s a light and fun activity that’s bound to bring people together.
35. Character quiz
Encourage everyone to step into another person’s shoes with this game. One person pretends to be a famous fictional character, while the others text in yes or no questions to find out who they are. If the character is The Terminator, someone might ask “Do you have a catchphrase?” “Are you from the future” or “Are you connected to Skynet?” (hopefully not!). If they reply with “affirmative,” oops, I mean “yes” to all, you’ll have a good idea of the character in front of you. Try this one today!
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